Was that a pickup line?I have taken people (more girls than boys). who did not know how to hold a pool cue. at the local bar. and had them shooting at APA-3 in 20 minutes.
"Can I show you how to hold the cue"
Was that a pickup line?I have taken people (more girls than boys). who did not know how to hold a pool cue. at the local bar. and had them shooting at APA-3 in 20 minutes.
Showing someone a proper stance and bridge goes a LONG way towards making the game at its most basic level much, much easier. I hated pool until my college roommate showed me how to make a proper open bridge. I went from regularly miscuing to being able to make 3-4 balls in a row if they were laying good.I have taken people (more girls than boys). who did not know how to hold a pool cue. at the local bar. and had them shooting at APA-3 in 20 minutes.
It is more than just showing them how to hold the cue,Was that a pickup line?
"Can I show you how to hold the cue"
The bar the OP set is extremely low, though. I'd venture to say that ANYONE, unless there is something seriously wrong with them (eyesight, severe joint/back problems, or some sort of learning disability) should be able to play at this level in short order. That is if they get their fundamentals up to a minimum level. I'm talking a couple of lessons and a few hours of work on stance, grip, bridges etc. Then a few months of play and drills if the person is up for that.All is subjective.
I’ve diligently played guitar for over 50 years. However, I’m a ‘decent’ player at best. In contrast at age 17, with a year experience in Judo and only a yellow belt, l was holding my own against top European competitors in my weight class.
I have zero aptitude in the arts and a natural aptitude In sports. If we all go out to play golf frisbee, cricket, badminton, white water kayaking, etc...we know which friends or family members will pick it up quickly. In contrast, my drawing of a dog will look like a potato with toothpicks.
Anyways, performance in billiards is the same. Give a couple hours coaching to a star quarterback who has never picked up a cue and he would be holding his own after a couple weeks against my sister who has played a couple decades.
I spent an afternoon playing with a guy who had bounced back and forth from minor league to the MLB. An elite baseball player by any means but not quite good to stick on a pro roster.All is subjective.
I’ve diligently played guitar for over 50 years. However, I’m a ‘decent’ player at best. In contrast at age 17, with a year experience in Judo and only a yellow belt, l was holding my own against top European competitors in my weight class.
I have zero aptitude in the arts and a natural aptitude In sports. If we all go out to play golf frisbee, cricket, badminton, white water kayaking, etc...we know which friends or family members will pick it up quickly. In contrast, my drawing of a dog will look like a potato with toothpicks.
Anyways, performance in billiards is the same. Give a couple hours coaching to a star quarterback who has never picked up a cue and he would be holding his own after a couple weeks against my sister who has played a couple decades.
Probably no one was really instructing him. That would have been back in the 1930s and instruction seems to have been rare back then. His name was Joe Bachelor. A mutual acquaintance commented, "Yeah, six months, but he wasn't doing anything but playing pool." That might have been 8-10 hours per day, and he was probably playing for something.Who was instructing that 16-year-old phenom? Pretty incredible story. I know people debate the talent issue in pool, but I've heard of similar meteoric rises that completely defy normal expectations and timelines for reaching certain skill levels.
I can't give you empirical evidence, but I can give you a real world example or two. I'm a SL5. I play in the woods, in the middle of nowhere (Bangor, ME). The only time I ever play anyone outside my division is if my teams make it to the tri-cup, and/or Vegas qualifier tournaments. (That's a max of 4 times a year, no more than 3 matches per tournament. So not a lot of exposure outside my regular territory.)ok no problem... so if you're telling me that no one in a group of SL2's only ever competing against only themselves will experience a raise in their handicap based on their play within that group, then I stand corrected and you'll never see me speak of the possibility again.
Some how I think something is being lost in translation, but I will most definitely bow to your knowledge on the subject matter.
Thanks for clarifying
I generally only got exposed to the 6/7s so I can't put any real world examples up for consideration for the lower handicaps. What I can say is in the 6/7 bracket within my small town you will see a varying array of talent across different rooms. What a SL6 in one room would be a SL5 in another. Dominate SL7s in one, would be a SL6 in the other.I can't give you empirical evidence, but I can give you a real world example or two. I'm a SL5. I play in the woods, in the middle of nowhere (Bangor, ME). The only time I ever play anyone outside my division is if my teams make it to the tri-cup, and/or Vegas qualifier tournaments. (That's a max of 4 times a year, no more than 3 matches per tournament. So not a lot of exposure outside my regular territory.)
I'm pretty much in the middle of the pack so far as SL5's in our area, by my estimation. Perhaps lower than middle, but I can hang with any of them.
Our team went to Vegas a couple years ago. I wasn't out classed against any of the SL5's that I played there, and we had 6 some odd matches out there. I felt that I was pretty much in line with the people that I played. To echo that further, I didn't see anyone on any of the teams that we faced that I felt were out of line with their Skill Level. One or two might have been on the strong side, and a good bet to go up in the future. (Which is a likely possibility in any group of players.) But no one was playing way over their skill level, to my estimation. Nor to the estimation of the SL7 on my team, as we had this discussion before.
I've always chuckled at the thought process that everyone that plays in Vegas has a much higher ability per Skill Level than what we see out here in the middle of nowhere. Cuz I didn't see it, in my first hand experience.
I think that the APA does a decent job of getting it close. Its not right all the time, but its right a lot more than it isn't. And when it isn't, its usually pretty close, most of the time. (One Skill Level off, something that will usually catch up in time.) Given the scope, its reasonable.
I think the 6 months only "counts" if the player is actively practicing and learning. I spent probably 3-4 years as an APA 3 (wasn't in league but roughly that skill level), but I only practiced a handful of times a year and never read/watched any instructional materials. I just played my buddies and random people in dive bars. But I do agree that 6 months of focused practice and research should get you to roughly APA 4 level. 1 year mark to reach APA 5 and 2 years to APA 6.
If you post a video, there are people on here who will give you pointers. I understand if you don't want to, but many people have gotten help on here.I totally need reset my expectations. I am an APA four, having been elevated recently to a five then smacked back down to a four. I haven’t won a match in over a month. I’ve practiced, and practiced, and practiced. Then practiced some more. I can’t seem to progress. I have plateaued. Keep missing the same easy shots. Make some of the harder shots. Absolutely maddening. Walk up to a practice shot, totally convinced I’m aligned properly. Shoot the shot. Miss it a skosh CB left. Line it up again. Convinced I’m lined up. Miss it the exact same way. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. I don’t know how to correct it. The shot looks right. Video shows my stroke to be sound. Still miss the shot the same way over and over and over. Adjust stance. Adjust backstroke. Make a few. Walk away. Return to the table hours later, miss the same f$&@ing way. Deflating. Gutting. At wits’ end.
Yes, I know, I need a coach. But damn this game. So close to being pretty good, yet so far from being pretty good
All kidding aside it took me 4 years to go from a SL3 in both to a SL7 in both. Your mileage may vary. I do have a table at home and I have received one lesson from Scott Lee. I have watched tons of videos both instructional and professional matches. I will say that when I face a real player in a tournament I usually get my lunch eaten. It shouldn't take you long to become a SL4 but then again I play with people that have been playing for 15 years that are still 3's and 4's. It all depends on how much time you are willing to invest on the table outside of your scheduled APA matches..How much time for you to become APA4 when you begin to work hard ?
Thanks to share
I totally need reset my expectations. I am an APA four, having been elevated recently to a five then smacked back down to a four. I haven’t won a match in over a month. I’ve practiced, and practiced, and practiced. Then practiced some more. I can’t seem to progress. I have plateaued. Keep missing the same easy shots. Make some of the harder shots. Absolutely maddening. Walk up to a practice shot, totally convinced I’m aligned properly. Shoot the shot. Miss it a skosh CB left. Line it up again. Convinced I’m lined up. Miss it the exact same way. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. I don’t know how to correct it. The shot looks right. Video shows my stroke to be sound. Still miss the shot the same way over and over and over. Adjust stance. Adjust backstroke. Make a few. Walk away. Return to the table hours later, miss the same f$&@ing way. Deflating. Gutting. At wits’ end.
Yes, I know, I need a coach. But damn this game. So close to being pretty good, yet so far from being pretty good
How much time for you to become APA4 when you begin to work hard ?
Thanks to shaI
I'm 67 and never really played until about 3 years ago. I wandered into a pool hall near my home one day, a great bartender and some advanced players took me under their wing and I started playing several days a week for an hour or 2. APA started me as a 3, I think, but I won a lot and became a 4 in my second session. My team captain held me out at the end of the first session because he didn't want me to get bumped up to a 4 right before cities. I'm still a 4, can play really well or suck badly, will need to be more consistent if I'm ever going to become a 5.How much time for you to become APA4 when you begin to work hard ?
Thanks to share
I'm 67 and never really played until about 3 years ago. I wandered into a pool hall near my home one day, a great bartender and some advanced players took me under their wing and I started playing several days a week for an hour or 2. APA started me as a 3, I think, but I won a lot and became a 4 in my second session. My team captain held me out at the end of the first session because he didn't want me to get bumped up to a 4 right before cities. I'm still a 4, can play really well or suck badly, will need to be more consistent if I'm ever going to become a 5.
APA National Team Manual says "generally, players start as SL3"; ... LO *may* start a player at a higher SL if appropriate). I joined APA 16 years ago as a SL4, because at that time "guys start at 4, women start at 3"; I'm not sure if that was the National guideline at the time, or if the local LO just decided to do it. But, in any case, as the manual says, a new player should expect his/her SL to fluctuate in the first 10 weeks or so. The OP didn't (AFAIK) say how long he's been a league player, nor what SL he came in as. Assuming it was SL3, and Depending on his true abilities, the SL of his first handful(s) of opponents, the Win/Loss, and the # of innings (all factored in by the magical handicapping system) it's entirely possible to see a jump so SL4 (or even SL5) in those few weeks. When I joined as SL4, we were only an 8-ball team at the time, and as an experienced player, I jumped to SL5 in about 3 weeks and never looked back.
From there, it took me about 4 years to get to SL6, then a couple more to reach SL7. I oscillated between 6 & 7 for several years, fortunately never getting "locked in" as a 7 at Nationals
The BIG thing about SL behavior to keep in mind: when you Win, the lower your innings are, and the higher the difference between your SL and the SL of your opponent will cause your SL to move up. So, to move up faster, beat better players... with runouts!!